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Hind is our Technology Training instructor for our Tech#Ready program and part of Association House Workforce Development. Her favorite part of her experience is that every day she gets to meet people from all over the country and experience new cultures. In honor of Women's History Month, she shares what this month means to her and why we need more women in leadership. What is your favorite part of your experience with Association House? During my work here at the Association House of Chicago, I enjoy getting to know more people from different countries around the world every day. I like how we all agree, no one looks at the other as different, on the contrary, our differences mean diversity. Here you can learn about new cultures, new traditions, and food. My workplace represents a small world full of kindness, compassion, cooperation, appreciation of people, and respects their humanity! What does Women’s History Month mean to you? It means to always remember that for thousands of years women have left their mark on their societies, have changed the course of history at times, and have influenced significant spheres of other's life. In all civilizations, extraordinary women from different faiths and backgrounds have worked alongside men to advance their communities. Their inspiring stories, charismatic personalities, and determination to contribute to the development of their environment make them beacons that guide young women and men today! Why do we need more women in leadership? Having more female leaders is important because female leaders change the perceived conception about who can lead and what qualities are necessary to have in a leadership position. Women bring a more complete range of the qualities modern leaders need, including self-awareness, emotional attunement, humility, and authenticity. Women in these roles help break down barriers and show everyone what women can and should achieve!

In honor of National Direct Support Professional (DSP) recognition week, Association House highlights Jovan Ocasio, one of our outstanding DSPs. Jovan was drawn to Association House when his summer job in 1994 with the mayor’s office of Workforce Development sent him to the Association House summer camp. When the camp ended, he decided to stay on as a volunteer for the Afterschool program. What initially drew you to joining the Association House family? I was drawn to the Association House When I was a teenager looking for a summer job with the Mayor’s Office of Workforce Development in the summer of 1994. They sent me to work for the Association House summer camp, which was the best thing they ever did, I loved it! When the summer camp ended, I decided to stay on as a volunteer for the Afterschool program because I really enjoyed it! The following year they hired me as a permanent staff. What is your favorite part of your experience with the Association House? My favorite part is having the opportunity to work with so many families over the years and hearing success stories from the participants I used to work with and how the Association House had a big impact on their life. Who or What influenced your desire to want to be a DSP? Honestly, I never thought about becoming a DSP. I used to work with the Out of School Time Program here at the Association House until the program closed. Ellen Vazquez’s (Supervisor of the Life Skills Education Program) niece and nephews used to be participants in the Out of School Time Program because of that I got to know Ellen. When the program closed, I left the Association House for a few years. During that time, the LSE Program expanded, and more participants were coming in, so they needed another staff. That’s when Ellen contacted me and told me that there was a position open, and if I was interested, send in a resume and come in for an interview. I took a chance and was hired, and it was the best decision I made. I love being a DSP and the participants I work with. I guess you can say Ellen helped influence me to be a DSP. What has been your most fulfilling experience as a DSP? Teaching Life skills to the participants such as personal hygiene, job skills, cooking, and money management to say a few. My favorite is coaching our Athletes for the Special Olympics. I love to take the participants out to train and prepare for the competition, whether it be for Track and Field, Bowling, Softball, or Soccer. Teaching them sportsmanship, teamwork, the different skills it takes to play the sport, and that it’s not always about winning but that they do their best. The best part is when they take what you taught them to the competition, do their best, and win medals or trophies. The excitement and big smiles on their face is so rewarding.

Across our community, many families were faced with immense challenges, stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic, in addition to preexisting circumstances. Through this difficult time period, the Chicago Community COVID-19 Response Fund has enabled Association House to increase access to food through our Emergency Food Pantry and create an Emergency Financial Assistance Fund for our participants who are most in need. So far, the Emergency Financial Assistance Fund has given AHC participants over $28,000. In addition, 716 bags of groceries were distributed, while another $11,675 has been provided in gift card assistance. In total, 602 persons have been served, which covers 169 total households. Our case managers and Workforce Development Supervisor, Sawyer Knibbe, are working with families in fielding assistance request and safe distribution. “Being relatively new to the organization, AHC staff have shown me what it means to rally around the community in a time of need,” said Sawyer. “It’s been encouraging to see the team effort involved in providing food and financial assistance to our participants most affected by the pandemic. I’m grateful for the opportunity and I’d like to thank the CCT for making it all possible.” The Chicago Community COVID-19 Response Fund was created to support local nonprofit organizations to serve the region’s vulnerable neighbors. The coronavirus outbreak has caused a greater demand for resources and services to support neighbors and communities. The Response Fund is assisting in tackling that demand by supporting agencies. In collaboration with the City of Chicago, The Chicago Community Trust and United Way of Metro Chicago launched the Fund to unite the funds raised by Chicago’s philanthropies, corporations and individuals to be disbursed to nonprofit organizations across the region. We are thankful to be a recipient of this grant as we navigate through the COVID-19 pandemic.

Every summer, Association House hosts the community for a day of fun and back to school preparation. Under the current pandemic restrictions, our traditional event could not occur, however, we successfully supported our community by transitioning our event to a giveaway. This year’s Back 2 School Backpack Giveaway provided over 500 backpacks to the community. Our team managed to serve over 200 individuals throughout the day while following COVID safety guidelines including wearing masks, marking spaces for social distancing, and hand sanitizer stations spaced in the event areas. Attendees received backpacks stuffed with school supplies along with recommended items for personal protection, including face masks and hand sanitizers. Thank you for those items that were donations from our Back 2 School Drive supported by various donor bases. Continuing the community effort, those backpacks were stuffed by our Healthy Lifestyles team and the event was assisted by volunteers and agency staff members. Thanks to everyone who assisted in making sure families and children will be prepared for remote learning to begin. You can see images from the event below.

When Yesica came to Association House, she was a single mom from the Back of the Yards neighborhood in Chicago. She was facing unemployment and financial hardship. Yesica’s hurdles in finding stable employment included lacking confidence, creating a resume, and a three-year gap in jobs. In Yesica’s past, she was told education was not an option for her by her family and believed a professional role in banking or the financial industry was a long shot. Upon joining our Financial Careers Training Program, she was very hesitant and nervous about whether she would remain in class, and initially, she was very quiet but observant. As a result of her participation in our workforce program, Yesica’s self-confidence began to improve quickly. During a Bank Tour visit, she demonstrated leadership and improvement in public speaking in front of banking executives who were observing the candidates for their future banking roles. Yesica remained in the class, graduating with perfect attendance and high scores on all her exams. By the end of the program, she demonstrated significant professional growth, improvement in public speaking, self-confidence, and interviewing skills which helped her secure interviews weeks before the end of the training. Yesica was the first to receive multiple job offers just one day after the Financial Careers Graduation and accepted a role with our bank partner

Adriana is one of our Counselors. She provides substance use assessments as well as anger management and treatment planning. She also provides individual and group counseling services for individuals and crisis intervention services and link participants to needed support services in the community. What is your favorite part about working at Association House? My favorite part about working at Association house is being able to help others on an individual and social level. I provide education, I listen to them, and bring hope by helping them change their lives. Lastly, I enjoy being a part of someone's transformation journey. I love the environment we have at Association House, my colleagues, and my participants. How have you maintained a focus on helping our participants during COVID-19? COVID-19 has been very stressful and scary to think about for everyone, but I have been able to set boundaries limiting myself on watching or reading the news. I have used my time to focus on other things. I have encouraged others to use their time on positive leisure activities that they are able to do at home. What is a fun fact about you? I am an army veteran and I have a 10-year-old son.

The Asian American community has been under attack recently as evident from the rise in hate crimes against them nationally and here in Chicago, to the recent murders of Asian-American women in Atlanta last week. The targeting of their communities, and in particular Asian-American women is not new. Asian-Americans have been subjugated for some time in the U.S., including through the Page Act of 1875, the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 and the Japanese Internment Camps of World War II. We at Association House categorically reject anti-Asian racism based in hate. The behaviors we reject are steeped in the same type of hatred that has stoked anti-Black and anti-immigrant sentiments in this country, and they have no place at Association House or in the communities we serve. To the contrary, I have been encouraged by the inclusive and welcoming environment of the House to all communities. I am further encouraged by the work of our Association House High School’s Anti-Racism Committee which has put issues like these front and center, and which is serving as a model for our organization-wide initiatives on Anti-Racism to come. For those interested in taking immediate action in support of our AAPI communities, there will be vigils this Friday at Horner Park and in Chinatown, and there is a proposed bill in the state legislature that you could personally support that would require the teaching of Asian-American history in Illinois schools to highlight the diverse experiences and contributions of Asian-Americans. For today and for always, we stand together in rejecting hate and in supporting our AAPI communities. Best, Juan Carlos Linares President and CEO

In Honor of May being National Foster Care Month, we would love to introduce you to some of the amazing Foster Parents we work with. In September 2019, Jack and Andy became foster parents in Association House and welcomed two young children into their family. To celebrate #FosterCareMonth we asked them a to share a bit about their experience. What has been your most rewarding experience as a foster parent? Seeing how one year in a loving, caring, and stable home can have such a positive impact and change, in the children’s lives. What has been your biggest challenge? Dealing with the insurance and finding a provider that accepts the children’s insurance provided through the state. Multiple times we have had to find new providers because of changes in the state insurance. What would you say to someone considering becoming a foster parent? It is going to be a rollercoaster, but it is worth it. Get used to accepting the unexpected and remember that you are important as well. Take care of yourself when you need to. If you ask Association House what resources are available to you, they will often go over and beyond to help you and your family out. Dealing with the insurance and finding a provider that accepts the children’s insurance provided through the state. Multiple times we have had to find new providers because of changes in the state insurance. What would you say to someone considering becoming a foster parent? It is going to be a rollercoaster, but it is worth it. Get used to accepting the unexpected and remember that you are important as well. Take care of yourself when you need to. If you ask Association House what resources are available to you, they will often go over and beyond to help you and your family out. April became a mom for the first time as a foster parent with Association House. She’s been at this just a short while, but she brings her whole heart to her family. In celebration of #FosterCareMonth, we asked her to share a bit about her experience. What inspired you to become a foster parent? What inspired me to be a foster parent was the desire to be a mother to someone who really needs that mother figure. Even though I know it could be temporary, I still feel like it is worth it to be that nurturing parent for however much time that child needs it. Helping that person become who he will become is a privilege for me. What has been your most rewarding experience as a foster parent? In my case, becoming a foster mom was becoming a mom for the first time and that had made this significant for me. I’ve always wanted to be a mom and foster parenting has given me that opportunity. What has been your biggest challenge? The biggest challenge for me in fostering has been trying to not only co- parent but also figure out my parenting style in general because before I walked into this, I was a single person with no children. I’ve learned a lot. What would you say to someone considering becoming a foster parent? I thought about doing this for a really long time before I actually did it, and my one regret is not doing it sooner. I think fostering is hard but it’s very rewarding as well. You get to be a part of somebody’s story for however long they need you and that is a gift! You definitely have to be flexible and let go of your preconceived notions of what it’s going to look like but once you do that and you make it your goal to serve and love that child and his family you will be the better for it. If you have love to give why not give it?

Kristy is the Supervisor of our Visions Substance Use Program. Question: What attracted you to work at Association House? Answer: In my search for non-profits in Chicago, I came across Association House's website. Seeing the long history and everything from case management, substance use, and mental health services, to a high school for youth until 21, two residential buildings, and more, I knew I should apply. I have always known I wanted to work with people in the criminal justice system that struggle with substance use. This program specifically works on a harm reduction approach. We are open and willing to meet each participant who comes in "where they are at" with no judgment. Q: What is your favorite part of working at AHC: A: I have been working here for five years and feel like Association House is one big family. Everyone here has the same goal: helping people in the community. It's a big building with multiple programs and everyone knows each other and works together to reach a common goal. Fun fact: My sister and I are 11 months apart and are the same age for five days in June.

Pursuing a college degree can be very expensive for students. Association House High School created the Harriet Sadauskas Educational Scholarship to assist students with their tuition and books. The $5,000 scholarship was awarded to Ashley Roman and Alejandra Ramirez, making these inspiring graduates the inaugural recipients of the scholarship. Ashley is a Youth Scholars, Skills, Service Program (YS3) graduate who never lets anything stop her. “Ashley takes her schooling seriously and never hesitates to take on challenges that support her academic growth,” praised YS3 Program Clinician, Noura Ebrahim. Alejandra, an English Language Learner (ELL) and proud mom to a two-year-old son, also stood out to staff. “I have not had a student complete as much work as she did in a limited amount of time. I am extremely proud of her work and look forward to seeing what she will accomplish in the future,” wrote Philip Pilger, Diverse Learning Mentor, in his recommendation. Both Alejandra and Ashley have faced many different hurdles, but their determination and desire for a better future for themselves and their families continues to be their biggest motivator while going through college at Wilbur Wright College. We sat down with them to learn more about their Association House High School experience and how this scholarship will impact their lives. What does it mean for you to get this scholarship? Alejandra: It means hope because I always say that I don’t know how I’m going to do it, but I’m going to do it. I have that hope that I will do it. It’s like when I signed up for college my boyfriend told me, “Ok just sign up for that and God will help us,” but I didn’t know how we would pay for it or pay for my books. He told me that and God is helping us right now. I don’t know how to express how I feel – there are so many emotions I’m feeling right now, I’m feeling happy. I honestly can’t believe this – it’s hard to express myself right now. Ashley: For me, this means that I would get the help to get to where I want to be, get the things I need. I want to have a successful future, so first I want to get my college paid off. Then, I want to get a house and get my mother things too. I just want to give her back everything that she gave me, and she never had, you know? What made you want to pursue college after high school? Alejandra: I had too many jobs that I didn’t like – I didn’t feel happy working at the grocery store. There was lots of discrimination, lower payments, and long hours working without having a lunch. I realized that I don’t want that for myself, and I don’t want that for my child. I want to give Liam the best, and I have to be an example for him. I want to work in a field that I love. I want to love my job. Ashley: I want to be successful and make a difference in the world. It’s what motivated me stay focused on my future. I want to become a therapist and study at a higher level to become a psychologist. How have your classes been so far at Wright? Alejandra: It’s like a normal class, they don’t expect us to know everything. I understand everything they say, and I like the classes. If I need help, then I can reach out to the teachers, and they have all the information for us. I feel so happy because I can’t believe that I’m really in college. I can’t believe it. I’m taking two English classes, one psychology class, and one math class – and its statistics class not really math. That’s why I like it because they use our personal lives to connect it to the class so we can understand better. I like all my classes, and I want to take more. Ashley: They’ve been good, I just need to pay attention. I’m taking a computer and English class right now and later on I’ll start [studying] criminal justice and music. My favorite class [right now] is computer because it’s easy, but English because I [understand the material] from the text and I can apply it to world, which is very valuable. How do you think Association House prepared you for college? Alejandra: For the short time that I was here I feel like I was [well] prepared by working with Mr. P. His first language is English, so he taught me a lot of words in English, how to write in English, and how to use commas. I’m not an expert right now, but I learned a lot [which helped me] express myself better in English and write. I’m still learning more in college, so I know I’m going to get better. Association House High School gave me a lot of resources and that’s why I felt prepared to go to college. Ashley: Association House prepared me to not let [the] little things that don’t matter stop me. To keep going no matter what because at the end of the day it’s gonna be worth it and if nobody is happy then I should be [happy] for myself because there are people who do care about me, and it doesn’t have to be the people I want.

Joseph began services with Association House in 2018. At the time, he was living in a nursing home due to mental illness. His ultimate goal was to gain the skills needed to live independently in an apartment of his own. After two years spent at Dulcinea, one of Association House’s supervised housing locations, Joseph achieved his goal. He continues to receive services through multiple programs and is a shining example to others. His goal now: to spread more joy and celebrate his new independence. Joseph, in his custom carnival worker shirt, poses with staff member Maggie. This summer, Joseph tackled another monumental goal: hosting carnivals for participants in programs across Association House. “I like watching game shows like the ‘The Price is Right’ pretty often, and then I realized that I could create mini games from the show for us to play and the rest is history,” Joseph explained. Imagine this scene, from one of the carnivals: “Dame un chiste,” the game leader called out—One joke (chiste in Spanish) for the chance to play a game. Immediately, hands flew into the air. Participants jumped up from their chairs hoping to be chosen. Joke after joke was shared as participants worked their way through Plinko, Hi Lo, ½ Off, and more. Smiles, cheers, and camaraderie were abundant. And after a year spent without gathering, the carnival felt like a light at the end of a tunnel. With every carnival, whether for Life Skills Education, Psycho-Social Rehabilitation group, or Dulcinea, Joseph’s kindness, humor, and creativity were on full display. For each, he selected games specifically for the skill levels of those attending, made those games, painted welcome banners, and used his own savings to buy real prizes to give away. “It’s so cool to see Joseph be a role model to his peers,” Maggie Hettman explained with tears of pride in her eyes. Maggie has worked with Joseph since the beginning, and, like all of us, couldn’t be more proud of the progress he’s made. Life Skills Education participants laugh their way through the water balloon toss at one of Joseph’s carnivals. About the Programs The programs that Joseph was a part of offer skill-building, community-building, and case management services for adults with serious mental illness or co-occurring psychiatric disorders and addictions. We believe that every person should be able to live their life in the least restrictive setting possible, and we’re committed to supporting individuals with mental illness and disabilities as they reach their goals.

Alicia is a talented Bilingual therapist who earned her Master’s in Counseling Psychology with a concentration in Latinx Mental Health from The Chicago School of Professional Psychology. Alicia practices therapy to empower people to create and mold their sanctuary space and tell their stories. To meet the rest of the therapy team, visit our Counseling page. What initially drew you to joining the Association House family? I was originally drawn to Association House as I was applying to my graduate level internship. I was glad to know that Humboldt Park and neighboring communities were being provided community mental health services, and absolutely knew Association House was my #1 choice because I wanted to work in my community and for my community. What is your favorite part of your experience with the Association House? ​I truly enjoy the family connection we have here at Association House. When passing by the hallways I always encounter welcoming hello’s and continue to learn more each day. I appreciate that Association House provides so many services under one roof. My team is a family within a family, and we work cohesively. Who or What influenced your desire to want to be a clinician counselor? Working as a High School Mentor and an attendance counselor within alternative high school communities is what solidified my choice in becoming a clinician. While working I became more aware of the lack of services and the systemic approaches needed. Mental health issues were extremely apparent through the student narratives. These very narratives started to connect personal experiences of my own within my family and communities. These realities challenged me to ask the many ‘who what where when why and how’ questions, but most importantly my role in these realities and the healing work and reflections I need to continuously take part in. What has been your most fulfilling experience as a clinician counselor? My most fulfilling moments have been learning of the courageous and vulnerable moments participants share with us. Whether it’s through showing up in person or virtual, expressing their empowering narratives. Their presence is the very reason Association House is rooted in.